Does Yogurt Causes Heartburn?

There are quite a lot of questions going around the Internet asking if yogurt is a trigger for heartburn. But before we answer this query, it is better to understand what heartburn or acid reflux really is, as well as determining the triggers that causes the symptoms to appear.

Heartburn or acid reflux happens when the acid from the stomach backflows to your esophagus. The exposure of acid on the wall of your esophagus will result to mild discomfort or a slight burning sensation to actual pain, especially when the walls are irritated or inflamed.

Normally, the esophageal sphincter (LES) acts as a valve that stops the stomach acid from entering the esophageal tract. However, certain factors can cause the valve (LES) to weaken or malfunction that causing a reflux of acid, thus the term acid reflux or heartburn. Also, there are also factors that increase the amount of acid in the stomach that forces the valve to open, thus releasing it to the esophagus.

Causes

There are different factors that lead to heartburn or acid reflux. Keep in mind that the cause of this problem is not gender-specific – both men and women can acquire heartburn except for pregnancy which is solely on the latter.

Many revealed that acid reflux is genetics, being born with a weak LES. However, statistics shows that today’s modern lifestyle has contributed to the increasing number of acid reflux patients.

Factors that causes acid reflux includes:

1. Eating Disorders – increased food intake will cause the stomach to create more acid, possibly weakening the LES to cause a backflow.

2. Smoking – cigarettes contains chemicals that increase the production of stomach acid, as well as weakening the esophageal sphincter.

3. Alcohol – over consumption of alcoholic beverages can cause heartburns or acid reflux due to increased acid build-up in the stomach.

4. Trigger food – trigger foods are foods that causes a chemical reaction in your digestive system that results in heartburns or acid reflux. An individual may or may not have trigger foods or differs between acid reflux patients.

Pregnant women are also prone to heartburn as well, though a minority was able to safely go through their condition without having to suffer its uncomfortable effects.

Heartburn on pregnant women is mostly caused by 3 factors:

1) a hormone called progesterone that weakens the esophageal sphincter (smooth muscles).

2) growing fetus in the stomach cavity that pushes the organs upwards.

3) slowing down of digestion that causes acid build-up.

Discussing Yogurt

Yogurt can be a cure to alleviate heartburn or it can be a trigger food that causes it. This doesn’t really answer the question whether it can cause heartburn but the best way to understand it is to first define what yogurt is and how it relates to this problem.

To put it simply, there are two types of yogurt. One is Raw Yogurt and the other is the Commercial Yogurt.

Raw yogurt doesn’t have any artificial sweeteners or preservatives. It contains a type of probiotics that helps regulates the pH balance in the digestive system. Think of it as base that counteracts acid. Probiotics in raw yogurt reduces the acid in your stomach thus eliminating the possibility of heartburns. Also, consuming raw yogurt has a soothing affect on your throat after suffering from a severe heartburn.

Commercial yogurt on the other hand doesn’t have any probiotics in it. In fact, commercial yogurts are consumed more as a fancy instead for healthy benefit. It contains artificial sugar, flavoring, and preservatives that can ruin the delicate pH balance in your digestive system, thus increasing acid production, resulting to heartburn or acid reflux.

Now that you know that there are two kinds of yogurt, it would be safe to say why many consider it as a soothing treatment to heartburns while others curse its existence when it triggers the problem.